E3 2016 Impressions — LEGO Dimensions

LEGO Dimensions

While at E3 I was able to see LEGO Dimensions in a more intimate setting than just a trailer. Here’s my take on LEGO Dimensions

When I first stepped into the very cushiony area to check out what was coming to LEGO Dimensions I was half expecting it to be something akin to all of the other toys-to-life genre titles in the way of a new disc and new toys to purchase. Of course with how TT Games has had everything set up it could have gone either way or at least the way that Warner Bros. would have wanted. Thankfully for LEGO Dimensions it looks like the team is keeping to their original goal of just building onto the winning success and not forcing us to buy new games each year along with the toys. That is the first thing to know right off the bat; we are just getting new toys and content without the need to pick up anything else.

We’ve already spoken on all of the new IPs that will be coming to LEGO Dimensions and it is a massive list. None of them will require a new game disk to play and enjoy but will come with everything that you need to play the story or extra missions in the pack. In fact during the demo we were able to see how the Missions Impossible and Ghostbusters story packs loaded right up into the game with just the toys and story disks. Each of which feeling like a full on LEGO title that the developer had crafted just for that IP like all of their other standalone titles already out there. It doesn’t look like these will be small additions at all.

On top of all of that there is yet another portal mechanic being added in with all of the new toys and dimensions here for LEGO Dimensions. It is kind of a dimensional rift that can be played and used to unlock hidden items in each story or mission that included them. In this demo we were able to see the girls from the Ghostbusters jump into another version of their universe to pull out items that were lost before and unlock a few extras. Pretty much just another way for TT Games to hide collectibles and more blocks in the game’s world. Which ever you may be in at the time. Although I have a feeling this will only be for the new worlds and none of the past ones.

The other big aspect that we were able to see for LEGO Dimensions was the new Battle Arenas coming. This is a first for any of the LEGO titles out there and this four-player couch experience looks and feels like something along the lines of Mario Kart of yore. Of course they are all set in the universe and with the characters that you currently have without being just a racer. In fact there was a “Capture The Flag” sort of game played among all of the characters on a Quidditch pitch. While not a solid game of Quidditch it looked like it was a blast to play as each character had all of their abilities and skills to help them grab everything and hopefully win.

Another fun mode that was show for LEGO Dimensions‘ Battle Arena was a mode that randomly assigned all players a mini-mission to complete and the first to complete them all would be the winner. Some of these things were to collect items around Pillow World from Adventure Time as well as survive an onslaught of enemies that you had to eliminate in the process. Yet another mini-mission to lead to the completion. This of course being the tip of the iceberg as there are still another 19 modes yet to be shown off for LEGO Dimensions‘ new toys to add into the mix.

I have to be honest here that LEGO Dimensions was just another money sink to me back when it first came out along with all of the others in the genre. After seeing and hearing about how Warner Bros. is keeping the whole game building off the original and not forcing a new full game purchase each year I became even more excited. While the new game modes and features are nothing to exciting for the genre LEGO Dimensions just jumped up to the top of this list as it isn’t looking to nickle and dime us all to death. Yes we need to buy new toys but since these ones bring a new game with it, it makes much more sense and I’ll be expanding my interests soon.